


Snow

by Zetal (Rodinia)



Series: Rare Ships Creation Challenge [13]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-05
Updated: 2016-12-05
Packaged: 2018-09-06 17:25:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,028
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8762296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rodinia/pseuds/Zetal
Summary: Castiel gets a text message asking him to meet someone in a park.  The sender is unidentified and it doesn't say who he's meeting, but he goes anyway.  As he waits in the snow, he remembers an earlier snowstorm.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Rare Ships Creation Challenge  
> Prompt: snow

For millennia, Castiel had loved snow. Now, it hurt. Sitting on the park bench, looking at the fluffy white flakes as they fell to the ground, his thoughts drifted back to the first time he’d actually encountered snow.

It was Balthazar’s fault, naturally. Castiel was busy in Heaven, running drills with Anna and the rest of his garrison, when Balthazar came dashing in. “You’ve got to come see what’s happening on Earth. It’s amazing.”

Anna rolled her eyes. “It’s always amazing, Balthazar. I think you’re just easily amazed.”

“Well, yes. But come see anyway.” Balthazar took off. Anna looked over the garrison and nodded. Castiel was the first to go, but Anna and the others weren’t far behind.

The angels reached Earth and stared around them. Everything was blanketed with glittering white, and more was coming down. “See? Isn’t it amazing? They’re going to love this stuff.”

“It’s cold and wet.” Hester flicked her wings in irritation as the snowflakes insisted on landing on them. “I’m going back.”

Uriel left with her, and others followed. Eventually, Anna, Castiel, and Balthazar were the only ones left. Anna buried herself in the snow, only to burst out. She seemed to be amused enough, so Balthazar signaled Castiel to follow him and took to the air.

Castiel followed, only to be struck by a flying missile. Balthazar had thrown a handful of snow at him. He dove down, scraping up a handful himself, to fling back at his friend. Before long, the two of them were swooping around, snowballs flying fast and furious through the gently falling flakes.

Anna noticed and joined in, the three of them dodging and laughing and flinging snow around until thunder rumbled. Anna sighed. “That was for me. I missed a meeting with Zachariah. Thanks for calling us down, Balthazar, this was nice.”

“Hope Zachariah’s not going to give you trouble,” Balthazar said as he landed.

Anna shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. We were doing aerial training in unfamiliar weather conditions. In fact, I’m going to recommend that all the garrisons be sent out for training when opportunities arise.”

She disappeared, leaving Balthazar and Castiel laughing too hard to continue their fight. They landed and watched the falling snow.

Every time Castiel had seen snow since, he couldn’t help remembering that first day. Most of the time, it made him happy.

This was the first snow he’d seen since he’d made the terrible mistake of misinterpreting Balthazar’s genuine concern for him as betrayal and killing his oldest and most loyal friend. One of the few angels outside the garrison who had never hesitated to stand beside him, never questioned his loyalty. The first angel to welcome him back after the Apocalypse. When the civil war started, and Balthazar had appeared to die, Castiel had been devastated. He understood, of course, when he found Balthazar alive. Balthazar wasn’t a soldier. He was a quartermaster. A guard. He was scared. In the first civil war, with God still around, Balthazar had hidden. It wasn’t that he didn’t support God and Michael with his entire being, it was that he was scared. For him to have saved Castiel from Raphael was huge.

This snow filled him with regret and guilt. Still, he sat here, waiting. He didn’t know what he was waiting for. The text message had been from an unknown number, lacking any identification. Sam and Dean had told him not to go, that it was probably a trap from Naomi or Crowley or someone else who wanted him dead or captured. Castiel agreed that it most likely was, but he couldn’t just not show up.

The sound of fluttering wings drew him out of his reverie, and he glanced to his left. And did a double take. This was impossible.

“Hello, Cassie.” Balthazar smirked at him. “Hope this doesn’t end like last time we got together. I didn’t prepare.”

“How are you here? I killed you!”

“You wound me.” Balthazar placed a hand on his chest. “All that time I spent with Gabriel, before he took off, and you don’t think I learned some of his tricks? I didn’t like thinking that you were far enough gone to kill me, but I did. Blame the Winchesters, I suppose.”

“I’m so, so sorry. I never should have hurt you, of all people. I’m glad to know it wasn’t as permanent as I’d believed.”

“Does that mean you’re not going to do it again? I can relax?”

Castiel rolled his eyes. “Balthazar. You know better than that.”

“Yeah. Doesn’t mean I wasn’t going to tip the scales in my favor a bit by setting up the meeting somewhere there would be snow.” Balthazar held up a hand to catch flakes. “I still find snow as amazing as I did that first time I saw it.”

“Me too. Although it would be a bit difficult to engage in aerial training maneuvers now, without hurting humans.”

Balthazar cracked up. “I miss Anna. She was so much fun to scandalize.”

“She was a good soldier and a good commander. She was a terrible angel. Like me.” Castiel scooped a bit of snow off the bench beside him. “I’m glad you’re back. Do you know what’s been happening in Heaven?”

“I know some of it. After all, I was never truly gone.” Balthazar reached out and took Castiel’s hand. “I’ve been laying low, living basically human. Never figured myself for the type to go native, but I did. Can I ask you something?”

“Of course. Anything.”

“Is there any truth to the rumors about you and Dean Winchester?”

“Are those still going around?” Castiel shook his head. “No. There is no truth to them. Dean is a good friend and a brother.”

“Good.” Balthazar leaned forward and kissed Castiel softly. “Would’ve hated to have to be jealous of a human.”

“Are you coming out of hiding, then? Back to Heaven?”

“Maybe. Do you want me to?”

“I will always want you with me. I’m not spending much time in Heaven these days, but if you want to go home, I’d come more often.”

Balthazar smiled and curled into Castiel. “Heaven doesn’t have snow.”


End file.
